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2014 Formula 1 season preview

With cars changing and the future of the sport flashing before our eyes, Fiasco Sports looks at what is changing for the 2014 Formula 1 season.

Source: Formula 1 official

Recent testing at Jerez has shown that luck in Formula 1 can change almost immediately.

Red Bull Racing’s engineers had to fly back to England to work on electrical issues with the new RB10 car, some issues still being unresolved with the new design at the Bahrain testing, with Adrian Newey explaining, “we have gone too aggressive with the new car design, and that has cost us testing laps.”

Source: Ausmotive

Mercedes and Ferrari look to be strong, according to the test days and the amount of laps they have completed and the driver line-ups.

It is set to be a competitive season with Kimi Raikkonen joining Fernando Alonso at Ferrari.

The 2014 season will see three new young drivers step-up from the development ranks to Formula 1, including McLaren’s Kevin Magnussen, Toro Rosso’s Danill Kvyat and Caterham’s Marcus Ericsson.

Source: Ausmotive

Due to new weight regulations, teams are required to reconsider car design for the 2014 championship to enhance better fuel consumption as well as using a different size motor, with the 2014 cars using a V6 1.6 litre turbo-charged engine.

Below is a breakdown of what has changed for each individual team for the 2014 championship, including drivers, chosen race numbers and the updates for the team’s cars.

Source: Ausmotive

Red Bull RacingSebastian Vettel #1Daniel Ricciardo #3
RB10: The Renault-powered Formula 1 car requires to be cooled more than any other engine, the new design is too aggressive causing the car to overheat.

FerrariFernando Alonso #14Kimi Raikkonen #7
F14 T: Ferrari have developed a car retaining last year’s pull-rod suspension, but have changed nearly everything else by increasing the cooling system while keeping adequate aerodynamic downforce and changing the body shape to balance the weight of the car.

MercedesLewis Hamilton #44Nico Rosberg #6
F1 W05: The Mercedes-powered car includes an elegant design. Mercedes having a strong advantage working directly with the motor suppliers and being able to mould the car to the engine, rather than build the motor to the car like other teams, giving them the edge gaining important laps during testing.

McLarenJenson Button #22Kevin Magnussen #20
MP4-29: McLaren have chosen the “anteater” nose style and the rear wing has completely changed this year, being held up by one single pillar. McLaren will continue to use Mercedes engines for the 20th season, before heading to Honda for 2015.

LotusRomain Grosjean #8Pastor Maldonado #13
E22: Lotus were one team that didn’t feature at the first pre-season test in Jerez, unveiling the car at Bahrain and believing they can be the lead Renault team this year, currently working on optimising the power delivery allowing drivers to more time to get used to it.

Force IndiaNico Hulkenberg #27Sergio Perez #11
VJM07: Force India has changed their livery to a black-dominant colour, utilising an unusual nose design, with the team continuing to partner with Mercedes who will supply the entire drive train.

Source: Ausmotive

SauberAdrian Sutil #99Esteban Gutierrez #21
C33: The Ferrari-powered Formula 1 car has included new elements used for the Ferrari’s F14, while opting for an unusual nose design.

Toro RossoJean-Eric Vergne #25Daniil Kvyat #26
STR9: The Renault-powered car began work during the summer of 2012, with the team working on the aero-package of the car and focusing on the development of creating a more current and competitive shape.

WilliamsFelipe Massa #19Valterri Bottas #77
FW36: Due to new regulations, Williams have decided to attach the end plates to a new ‘beam wing’, which is placed less than 150mm above the reference plate, where there are no restrictions, utilising the rear diffuser and making the new innovation just as effective as 2013′s rules.

MarussiaJules Bianchi #17Max Chilton #4
MR03: Using a Ferrari engine for 2014, the MR03 compared to other cars on the grid is using a more simplistic design; similar to McLaren they are using a single-pillar rear wing.

CaterhamKamui Kobayashi #10Marcus Ericsson #9
CT05: For the fourth year in a row, Caterham will use Renault F1 Sport engines, while unveiling a car with a very unusual nose design in striking green paint.

Source: Ausmotive

Some changes have also occurred with the official 2014 race calendar, with the Korean and Indian races dropped for the Austrian and Russian Grand Prix.

The official Formula 1 Championship will kick off with the Australian Grand Prix held in Melbourne’s Albert Park on March 16, starting the nineteen-round season.